Being Alone
by rwbybomb21
Summary: Ruby has to suffer through three years of agonising ignorance from her fellow students and teammates. When she's about to give up, a green gem shines through her dark life.


**I don't own RWBY. If I did, I'd have monkey butlers and ice-cream mattresses. **

**This was inspired from the fic Rose Garden.**

(^^^^^^)

"_A world without love is like a rose without air. You need it to thrive, or you'll wither and die."_

_-A friend of mine-_

"_Love is the music to our hearts, for it livens us with measurements of immeasurable feelings. Without it, we play a soft tune of boredom and loneliness within our souls, and with it, the tune is lively and happy. It radiates what we feel."_

_-Me-_

How was she left alone? She used to be the centre of attention, and while she didn't usually like it, it showed that her peers and fellow students- hell it even showed that her own sister- cared enough to talk to her. Her being the team leader of RWBY, a small, dedicated group of huntresses-in-training, she had much to learn, and most of those things she actually did want to learn; such as love.

All around her were familiar faces wearing different masks each time she would talk to them; some disguising disdain with glee, others, disgust with boredom. One such person had been her only family member of some form of blood, Yang. Even her girlfriend, the arrogant and annoying yet calm and somewhat caring partner of Ruby Rose and girlfriend to her sister had shown utter disgust at seeing Ruby sometimes, and it did nothing to bring her in high spirits; but ever day, she remained the same...she had been wearing a mask of happiness over that of pain for most of her life now, and it was second nature for her to just shrug it off as if nothing ever happened.

No one seemed to hear the constant screams she would give off in her sleep though; all of her teammates slept like rocks, and barely cared enough to notice her health slowly deteriorating. No one seemed to notice her silently sobbing herself to sleep, crying for someone to notice her and, yet, no one ever did. Days like this turned into weeks, and weeks, months.

Ruby Rose, the child of the famed Summer Rose- now long dead- was constantly seeking some way of recognition, be it searching for constant things to do to keep her out of depression and placing that harder-to-keep-on-everyday- mask of happiness on everyday to do so.

Ruby Rose, the sister of Yang Xiao Long- infamous for battering those who hurt her sister to a near bloody pulp- was either unwillingly or unknowingly, hurting her sister beyond that which can be measured by words.

Blake had been dating Sun, and had completely ignored her team leader sometimes, others she just didn't pay attention. She used to show Ruby the most attention, even when she started dating Sun, but now; well, let's just say that Ruby is lucky if she's actually heard by the girl in black, let alone her own teammates and sister.

Her friends, and social circle, had begun to exclude her from their many different activities and sessions of mindless banter and merriment. The only times she was included was when they played a game that was four vs. Four, generally board games or sports, but there were only three people. They all turned to Ruby then, demanding that she join, even after everything they had done to her. It was for naught, of her getting hopes high and chins being raised; no, she was left out of the actual game's participation, there in name and not physical form. Eventually, they stopped inviting her altogether, completely forgetting her existence as Blake brought Sun along one day.

This was her daily life now; she would get up, ignored by her team and friends as she got dressed, brushed her teeth and went for a walk. She came back, still ignored, and got ready for classes. She would then leave for said classes alone, which is something Cardin took advantage of, annoying and harassing the younger girl.

Today was one of those days, but even Cardin had limits; and today it seems he had completely lost himself to the code of bullying: there are no limits.

Ruby was just walking, head down and feet dragging behind her, almost never leaving the ground. Today she had just been awoken by Weiss' incessant rambling on how she couldn't sleep with all of the screaming that Ruby did in her sleep. So, finally, it seemed her teammates had shown some sort of curiosity as to what was wrong with Ruby; all it took was for her to suffer in silence right in front of everyone as if they were blind.

Sadly for her peaceful walk, Cardin and his team were walking the opposite direction; directly towards her.

They seemed to have spotted Ruby, for they diverted their attention to calling ridiculous and scandalous taunts from their position. Since Jaune had stood up for himself, Cardin and his team had to find someone new to bully. Velvet wasn't fun to bully anymore because she was getting help from Blake. In idle boredom, they all noticed Ruby's down behaviour and, risking their lives due to her usually over-protective sister, made a joke and started to bully her. Upon noting that Yang was preoccupied to notice, they began their small threats and slight bullying.

Russell was the first, usually, to back down when they realized they were going to bully a fifteen year old, let alone one of the most dangerous people on the planet, but after Cardin did and he saw no reaction from the girl, he, to, began to bully her.

All the while this was usually happening, Velvet herself would watch from the sidelines, saddened at Ruby's blank expressions and her recent down attitude that no one seemed to take any form of notice to, and she could do nothing to help; but maybe that's because she never tried. Velvet's teammates would watch as well, but they held some form of utter disdain for Ruby's sister after an event – of which she knew nothing of- at junior Xiong's club, and at first actually helped Cardin's team bully her, throwing small taunts here and there. Eventually they all saw how Ruby didn't even bat an eyelash at this, as if she expected it, as if she felt she deserved it or this was nothing new.

All the while, all she could do was watch and do nothing, along with her team; and today was one of those days.

"Hey there little red, what's the matter; ran out of cookies?" Cardin taunted. If only he knew the pain she was in right now...

"Aww...not getting attention?" Russell added in, and all Ruby did was continue to walk past them as she did everyday to everyone.

That was when Velvet's team decided to throw in their taunts. Fox taunted her, laughing all the while, as Ruby simply ignored everything, as if she was in another world, her eyes still on the floor as she dragged her heels along the floor, towards Oobeleck's class- the teacher's didn't even notice her.

Out of the corner of her eye, she thought she saw Coco slap Fox hard over the back of his head, but shook it off as hope that someone cared anymore, wasted hope.

She dragged her way in, the teacher not even noticing her arrival- it seems even the teachers had began to forget her, only noticing her when she spoke. She rarely ever spoke anymore.

Sitting down on the furthest table away from everyone else, she placed her hood over her head, then her head on the table, and began dozing off, not even noticing Coco and velvet's concerned eyes switching to and from her form to the table team WBY were at with JNPR, laughing and talking as if Ruby never existed; what really annoyed them though was the fact that Yang, her own sister, never even bothered to glance her way anymore, not noticing her own fifteen year old sister's shift in seats, or the pretty apparent nightmares- the sound she screamed was so loud, they were pretty sure it woke up the entire dorm building- she was having every night, the constant words of begging and loneliness filling their ears, preventing sleep.

They could only imagine the tiredness Ruby was feeling, and maybe they couldn't even begin to imagine the pain she was in; everyone she considered a friend had ignored her, abused her and generally hated her, and all because of a few budding romances.

Velvet picked up some conversation fomr the WBY and JNPR teams.

"Hey guys, you all up for the team bonding sessions tonight?" Yang was pretty enthusiastic; it only served to make Coco's blood boil even more and velvet to have to hold her back while she heard the conversation continue.

Nora pumped her fist in the air. "Hell yeah! What are we doing tonight?" Ren simply smiled at Nora's enthusiasm; she was too much to handle sometimes, but the rest of the time, she was perfect- she was his practical balanced equitable other half.

Blake sighed. "Actually, I can't. Sun's taking me out tonight, so sorry."

Weiss looked panicky. "What about Neptune?"

"He's dating that Emerald chick." Yang replied.

"So, who's going to fill the eighth place?" Jaune asked, and Velvet was sickened when none of them even decided to think of Ruby; Yang was so ignorant as to even ask about asking one of the professors.

"But, if we include Goodwitch or Ozpin, it won't be team building anymore!" Nora exclaimed, and Coco had the urge to slap them all.

"How about Sage?" Forget it, Coco wanted to punch them all.

"Yeah, sure." Ren agreed.

Coco wanted to put them all in comas.

Ruby was just sleeping soundlessly, tears streaming down her face as she thought of the days when the others actually noticed her, or when she was met with smiles and hugs, not frowns and bullies.

As the others went on with their own selves, eventually asking Sun's friend Sage to join, Ruby could only think one thing as she cried throughout the lesson that ensure during her first year.

'_The second year might not be so bad, right?'_

(^^^^^^)

She couldn't have thought more wrongly.

Second year, if it was possible, was _worse_ than first; Weiss had all but forgotten her, Blake never even listened to a word she said in combat, the teachers were purposefully ignoring her, and Cardin even began to pity her; _Cardin_, of all people.

Weiss had completely captured Yang's full attention, and Ruby could hardly sleep anymore, opting for late night strolls in Vale to clear her disturbed, lonely mind.

She spotted burning ginger, white suit and smoke from a cigar out of the corner of her eye.

She just leaned up against a black box, and stared out at the sky. Why should she stop what he wants anymore? He wants the Dust, he can have it. She lost all reason to care, she lost the will to do things, and she lost the will to simply live. All she does now is eat, sleep, fight and _breathe_.

Roman saw her out of the corner of his eye. "Well, hello Red. Here to try and arrest me?"

She simply ignores him and sighs, turning around to face him with empty grey, her happy, enthusiastic silver eyes that he spotted oh, so many nights ago to the very first time they met were gone.

Roman simply stared; what could he say to the person who was so enthusiastic about stopping him the first time they met, who was now ignoring him? What could he even do? He couldn't look her in the eye, the deadened look giving him chills; he simply could do nothing.

He even noticed the bags beneath her dead, grey eyes. She clearly hadn't slept well in at least a year.

He sees something there, something like want, need, hope.

But when he turns his head when a bumbling White Fang member knocked a crate down to shout at him, and when he turns back...

...there are simply petals in her place.

Weeks went past like this; Roman would always see her dead, grey eyes boring into the cloudless skies whenever he robbed different Dust shops, and to say it unnerved him... would be a serious understatement.

He was terrified..._because_ she wasn't going to smile as she stopped him, or she didn't have that happy spark in her dead, dull eyes. Ruby could take solace in that at least; someone was noticing her existence, even for a little while and even if it was a criminal.

On about the sixth heist, Roman was the one to find her at the shop he was going to steal from. He just ignored her without a passing glance, as everyone else always did, and went to work. Ruby was too busy staring at the sky when she felt two other presences that she had not felt yet.

She felt a hand wrap itself around her neck from behind, and a dagger place itself squarely at the peak of her back, just between the shoulder blades.

She just closed her eyes and awaited death.

She opened them when she heard a feminine voice ring through her hears. "Hey, Roman; is this that little girlfriend of yours?" Ruby could hear a snicker in the background, but just closed her eyes again and unconsciously leaned against the dagger. She just wanted to die, she didn't care anymore. Her existence meant nothing.

But the person grabbing her throat must've felt her lean on the dagger, and shifted it away, leaping backwards with a surprised look in her red eyes. "What the hell, Roman!? She's not even...scared..."

The girl's complaints were quieted when Ruby turned around and looked at her, staring at her with grey eyes and an expressionless face.

"Wow, I've seen a lot of depressed people in my time, but this just takes the cake." The boy next to her, the one who sniggered, was presumably trying to cheer her up, for whatever reason. Ruby just wanted to die; these people would notice her for a little while, and ignore her, just like her friends did, just like her sister did...just like the teachers or the other students, hell, even her own father, did.

When Ruby didn't even crack a smile, the boy felt...terrible. "Shut it, mercury. I'll give you ten Lien if you're quiet for at least five minutes."

"Deal."

But Ruby just went back to looking at the sky, as she always did, with no emotion whatsoever.

She gave up with emotion in the first year. This second year? Well, now she has just given up on life, on herself and others.

She felt someone tap her shoulder and looked down again to see two red eyes, curiosity spurred within, staring into dull grey.

"Hi!" the green haired girl exclaimed, putting on one of her many masks for those she needed to; she used the cheery one to get close to people, to expose them to their weaknesses.

Ruby simply stared for all but a second, and looked back up.

The girl just sighed whereas Mercury looked genuinely put off. "Hey, err, Roman; what's her name?"

Romans voice poured out from behind a box. "Red. Now are you gonna leave me to work or what?"

Mercury looked back at his friend. "Hey, Emerald; are you gonna leave Red alone?"

Ruby just heard footsteps walking away from her, and when Emerald looked back to see the depressed Ruby...she was gone.

But there was something about Red...it made her feel something when she looked into those depressed, lifeless eyes...

...she felt sad.

And so, they met each other for every other dust robbery, Ruby listening with dull, dead eyes while Emerald spoke of her past mistakes and other such unpleasentries.

Emerald stumbled out a confession to Ruby on New Years Day...

...Ruby simply smiled; something she had not done for years, and kissed her.

(^^^^^^)

Blake, Weiss and Yang had all turned twenty; the age of drunken decisions that you'll regret for the rest of your life and nightclubs and bars galore.

Ruby didn't even feel like celebrating it with them; they had forgotten her, right? So why not forget them?

So, she must have done something to herself that day...for she woke up the next with a girl with amber eyes looking at her curiously. It was Blake, she saw, who was staring with intense amber, but at the same time, some sort of want was behind them.

Why would she want her? She had ignored her and encouraged the others to ignore her throughout three years of Beacon, rendering Ruby the loneliest girl in the world, and now she wanted to take notice again?

No. Ruby wasn't having that.

But the side that wanted to be noticed again showed itself, the side that wanted to live again, and she did something she hadn't for three years; spoke.

"Hello."

But when she did speak, it must've sparked the lovebirds of the room to notice, because Weiss looked surprised; why were they all suddenly paying attention to her?

Her voice was raspy, deep, from years of not using it; she was simply too tired of her teammate's not paying attention to her, and muting was her only choice to forget them as they did her.

"Are...you okay, Rubes?"

Ruby simply whipped her head to Yang, who flinched when she saw what seemed to be three-year old bags under Ruby's deadened, lifeless eyes.

"You don't care." It wasn't a question, a statement, it was simply words; Weiss looked at her angrily, and Yang with the look of shock.

"W-What do you mean I don't care? Of course I do!" her voice took on that of shock, as if she believed what she was saying. Ruby scoffed internally; of course she would, they were at the wrong, but in their eyes, it was Ruby who was at the wrong.

But she didn't care anymore.

Weiss backed her up. "...Yeah! We care enough to ask you, don't we?"

Blake simply nodded.

"Three years too late." Ruby said monotonously, and simply sat up; she had not stretched, not yawned, not rubbed her eyes, she simply... stood.

That was when the team, for the first time in their lives, noticed three things. Ruby had dried tears that would probably never leave her face from years of crying, she had scars that ran up her wrists and forearms, and she didn't even look at them while she changed in front of them, seemingly forgetting they were there.

They had forgotten her, so why not forget them?

But before she could leave, Yang grabbed her and spun her around, donning a serious face. "What are you talking about?"

Ruby spoke, her voice hoarse and monotonous. "You all ignored me for the three years we've been here; no one attended birthday parties, no one spoke to me, no one acknowledged my existence." She looked to a shocked, sad and guilty team, and spoke the last words they would hear from her before she went mute again.

"I could have died and you wouldn't have noticed."

And so the weeks went by, the team desperately trying to undo the irreparable damage, but it was their own fault this had happened; they had ignored Ruby, they knew that now, and they also knew, much to the despair of Yang, that Ruby had turned mute because of lack of talking, proving that they, indeed did, ignore her.

They spent every waking moment trying to get Ruby to talk; Weiss trying to help with grades which were already immaculate, even by her standards. Blake attempted reading sessions, to help improve grammar and vocabulary that already exceeded her own and Yang tried to make up for the lost birthdays and Christmases that they had ignored her through, to find out that Ruby simply did not care anymore.

She lost care for her team after they began ignoring her. Now, she simply wanted to get through the days, visit her new girlfriend, and get through life.

Ruby, after another day of her team hounding her to try and make up for it, trudged off outside the school, her girlfriend already waiting there for her, and without a word, she linked her arms with Emerald's, noting that Mercury wasn't too far behind, and walked over to a secluded area of the park. Mercury left them to do whatever it is they do, while he walked around the park, looking for threats and things he branded 'cool'.

Emerald sat in Ruby's lap, her hands tangled through Ruby's red tipped hair, her hips being held by Ruby as she softly caressed her cheek with the other, their lips interlocked through passion.

This was the one time Ruby didn't feel forgotten, and she didn't know why, but something happened that should never have happened again.

She spoke. After they parted, she looked Emerald right in the eyes, her hands touching her cheek, and her voice and lips moved as if on their own accord.

"I love you, Emerald."

Emerald was too shocked to say, anything. Her girlfriend of a year, who never once spoke, or showed nary a hint of emotion, was looking at her as if she were a goddess and speaking as if her voice was made of rough leather.

And since she could say nothing, she did something instead; she kissed Ruby not with passion, but with love back, making sure their mouths and bodies remained as one. She was sure, since she never believed this would happen, that Ruby was a dream; but when Ruby began caressing her outer thighs and nibbling her neck, it was definitely not a dream to her.

She loved Ruby too.

Ruby broke apart, and it all came out: How much she loved Emerald, why she never spoke, her years of being ignored and her attempts at suicide; each and every word simply hit Emerald like a punch to the face, and at the end of it all Emerald, the stone cold thief, broke down, crying into Ruby's shoulder and kissing Ruby's face, each kiss laced with the words "You'll never be alone again..." and each kiss pressed to her lips were followed by angelic promises.

Ruby knew her life was only just beginning to get better.

(^^^^^^)

For once she was right.

Her team had began including her into their activities, not that she enjoyed much anymore, her childhood consisting of crying herself to sleep and muting herself.

She had received many messages of encouragement and love from Emerald on her scroll, and Blake was beginning to take notice.

Of course, Blake had ulterior motives; she had liked Ruby since day one, but the girl was a bit too young, so she dedicated her time to being a Huntress, purposefully ignoring Ruby the first year, and then accidentally ignoring her for the rest.

And now that she could see what her ignorance has caused, she thought she might as well try and fix it with a little love; she didn't know Ruby's relationship status, however.

They were all sat around the table, JNPR out for a two week retreat with Professor Port- sadly they would all miss the upcoming dance. They all tried to get back in Ruby's non-existing good books, and started by sitting as close as possible to where she usually used to sit.

So when Ruby walked right past them and sat in a corner with 'Ruby' carved into the side, they were all shocked.

So, Ruby had been spending her lunch times eating alone as well as them ignoring her? This was sickening.

Weiss frowned, her eyebrows crinkling together, while Yang looked shocked and Blake looked sympathetic; why, why would she look sympathetic? She had no idea what it was like to be lonely, she had no idea.

Ruby noticed their looks, and realised she wasn't going to get left alone- a thing she had been accustomed to throughout the years. So, she stood, walked over and sat the furthest away from them she could. But Ruby just sitting on the same table as them was a huge victory.

They noticed she had already finished her meal and was, as always, absorbed in the world of a book. Blake used this method to escape the world around her because she was disappointed in what it was, what it had become; so when she saw Ruby open the pages and seemingly ignore her team's cries for acknowledgment- something Ruby had done plenty of times- she became even sadder.

The days dragged on when Ruby continued like this, and Blake finally grew suspicious as to who she was talking to constantly on her scroll.

She got her answer, as did the rest of the team, on the day the foreign students from Haven and Atlas came in.

The day of the dance.

(^^^^^^)

Blake was almost bouncing on her bed from excitement; tonight was the ball, the day she would ask Ruby out.

Of course, there was the extremely high possibility that Ruby would say no, but nothing ventured nothing gained.

So her and the rest of them went with Blake as encouragement, waiting until Ruby revealed herself in her dance outfit; it was mandatory to go, after all.

When they all saw her, their jaws dropped ten inches to the floor.

There Ruby was, in a blood red suit, no tie, a loose, black undershirt and a green flower of some kind in her left breast pocket. Her slacks were the same colour as the suit, albeit slightly darker, and the shoes were shined and charcoal coloured, light reflecting off of them every time she took a step. The long side of her short hair style was smoothened out with a hair straightener, and the short, wild sides were combed down to her head.

Yang hated to admit it, but if her sister was a dude, she'd probably be committing various acts of incest all night long with her.

Blake was about to ask her then and there, but Ruby just walked right past them and into the ballroom, standing as far away from the others as possible while standing next to the punch bowl, occasionally sipping on a glass of the fruit drink.

Minutes, hours, they both ticked by, and Ruby's legs never once moved form the punchbowl, her face as impassive as ever as the students all around her began dancing, kissing- her scroll vibrated, and as she opened it, she read the message.

'_Behind you'._

Ruby spun on her heel, only for her lips to connect with familiar mint flavoured ones. Her hands instinctively moved on muscle memory, wrapping around Emerald's waist. Mercury coughed into his hand, ruining the moment, smiled with his hands out wide, as if expecting a hug.

"C'mere, sis." He said, in a way similar to how Yang would say it. Mercury had started calling her sis not long after Emerald and her got together, almost two years ago, and at first she didn't respond to it. Then, she began to see him as a big brother figure, and finally, a brother, and so, she walked over, and hugged him back.

When he let go, he looked her up and down. "Goddamnit!" He exclaimed, before handing over twenty Lien to the black haired woman next to him; Cinder.

Now, while many see her as cold, uncaring and evil, Ruby thawed her heart out when Emerald came to present her. At first, she was ready to kill the girl, claiming she was a distraction- of course, it was meant to scare her- but when Ruby openly embraced the idea of death, she reconsidered.

She wanted to use Ruby for her own sinister gain, and, secondly, tried that. Of course, even while Ruby was depressed, she still had morals, and eventually, Cinder saw something akin to...love? Certainly not the same Emerald had for her, but maybe...motherly.

Oh well, in the end, Ruby showed her how cruel the world is, and how you have to take the chances while you're good, and leave them when you're bad.

She decided the good path. She used her criminal connections to hunt down the White Fang and eliminate them, she used her syndicate to stow the Dust they had stolen away for a rainy day, and had all but given up on crime...almost.

She still picked pockets, but minor stuff was hardly worth the police time, and she got to keep the thrill of crime in the process; win/win situation if there ever was one.

Mercury looked down in embarrassment as Cinder simply chuckled, before looking at Ruby to see her dressed up, and then grimaced as she handed over the Lien to Emerald, who simply smiled smugly, before looking at Ruby and elaborating.

"You see, Mercury made a bet that he would be better dressed than you, and Cinder made a bet that you would be better dressed than him. I made a bet..." she stroked Ruby's chin. "...That you'd look gorgeous, much better than Cinder and Merc."

Ruby nodded in understanding, before leading her by her hands to the punch bowl.

She handed her a cup, and Cinder took out a small flask. Ruby shook her head, and Cinder pouted before putting it back, but not before secretly pouring it into the bowl, spiking it. Say what you wish to, but Cinder can be quite the joker.

Ruby stopped Emerald from getting another drink, motioning for her to smell the bowl. "Cinder, you spiked it!?" she was aware that the noise in the ballroom was too loud through all of the laughs and music, but still looked around to make sure no one noticed. Cinder just shrugged, taking a sip of the spiked drink before going to mingle with the guests, dragging off a hapless Mercury.

Emerald, after that was over, dragged off Ruby, who didn't protest at all, to one of the seats at the back of the room.

As soon as Ruby sat down, Emerald straddled her, her hands tangling through Ruby's hair. Ruby simply stared at her...

...until she saw three pairs of eyes staring at her in varying degrees of shock.

Emerald stopped, spun her head around, and saw them. "Enjoying the show?" she teased, and watched with increasing amusement as Yang's eye twitched while Weiss was trying to stab her with her eyes. Blake looked ready to lop her head off.

"Ruby; who is...is this?"

Ruby leaned her head over Emerald's shoulder, and spoke, for the second time her team would hear her. "My girlfriend."

Yang's jaw fell, Weiss looked at her incredulously, and Blake looked angry.

"Girlfriend; yeah, right." Weiss taunted.

Emerald simply smirked and moved her hips against Ruby's as she spoke. "Well, you see...we've been dating for one year, ten months and...Uh..."

"Six days..." Ruby quietly whispered, her body enjoying the feeling of Emerald on top of her to care.

"Right, thanks flower." She turned her head to Blake, who was reaching behind her to grab at her sword. "Oh, is the little kitten getting jealous?"

Blake growled when she didn't find her sword, forgetting too late that she left it in the dorm.

"Jealous?" Ruby asked, her tone still a whisper.

Blake looked suddenly sheepish. "Well...Y-Yeah...I mean, I kinda like you..."

Ruby repeated what she had said earlier. "Three years too late, Blake."

And Blake's eyes drooped with sadness, before Ruby said something unexpected, even to herself.

"Go and find someone else; there are plenty of people out there for you. One person isn't going to make a difference." As if happy with Ruby's words, Emerald ground into Ruby more, causing Ruby to moan under a whisper, Emerald smirking as she looked back at Blake with an expression that said 'in your face'.

Blake mouthed _'she's mine'_ with a menacing scowl.

Emerald just smirked, and mouthed back _'she was never yours'_.

(^^^^^^)

**Bad work, I know, but let me know. Jinouga, this story was for you, BTW. Not a better version of Rose Garden, just darker. **


End file.
